Shelters, NParks, Mandai Wildlife Group take haze-relief measures to protect animals

SINGAPORE – To protect animals from the toxic haze in Singapore, some organisations and shelters are moving their vulnerable charges to air-conditioned rooms and shortening outdoor activities, among other measures.

The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) Singapore told The Straits Times that its most vulnerable animals are housed in air-conditioned clinic wards because its shelter is not air-conditioned, making it difficult to deploy air purifiers effectively.

These animals include seniors and those with existing health conditions like asthma and kidney issues.

Where possible, the “next most vulnerable animals” are brought into other air-conditioned rooms such as SPCA’s offices and the SPCA shop, an SPCA spokesperson added.

She said: “Thus far in this haze season, we have not observed any signs of our animals struggling, although this could be due to the precautionary measures in place.

“We will continue to monitor them closely for symptoms (of haze-related distress), and encourage pet guardians to do the same at home.”

Since early September, bouts of smoke haze from fires in Indonesia have blanketed Singapore, causing the Republic’s air quality to turn unhealthy for 18 consecutive days in October.

As for humans, poor air quality can impact animal health.

Symptoms of distress include rapid or laboured breathing, red or watery eyes and changes in terms of appetite and water intake.

At the Animal & Veterinary Service’s (AVS) facilities, fans, cooling towers and air purifiers have been used to enhance ventilation, said National Parks Board’s (NParks) group director for wildlife management How Choon Beng.

More susceptible animals have also been moved indoors where possible, he added.

Outdoor activities like dog walks and toileting have also been shortened as part of precautions taken by AVS as well as animal welfare organisations SPCA, SOSD and Action for Singapore Dogs (ASD).

ASD founder Ricky Yeo said the shelter, which houses about 60 dogs across four units at The Animal Lodge in Sungei Tengah, has reduced walks for its animals from up to half an hour to enough time for a toilet break.

He added that the organisation is mindful to ensure the dogs still get a chance to stretch their legs, as the risk of fights breaking out between the animals rises if they are cooped up indoors for too long.

“They’ve been amenable to the shorter walks so far. There have been no complaints,” he said.

When asked, SOSD and ASD said they welcomed donations of masks for their volunteers and air purifiers to help cleanse the air.

A Mandai Wildlife Group spokesman said it has increased monitoring to look out for any changes in its animals’ health and behaviour, although no signs of concern have been observed.

She added: “Our animals have access to shelter, indoor or back-of-house areas, and our teams will relocate an animal if its condition calls for it.

“Activities such as presentations may also be modified or paused depending on prevailing conditions.”

She said depending on the readings and the work involved, staff duties are adjusted by rotating tasks to shorten time outdoors and non-essential outdoor work is deferred.

“Indoor rest breaks are available as needed,” she added.

NParks’ How said the statutory board has not received any haze-related animal rescue cases so far, although it has protocols to rescue and care for wildlife that are in distress during this period.

Addressing the long-term impact of haze on Singapore’s animals, he said NParks studies its forest plots to understand and manage the impacts of the El Nino climate phenomenon, which include associated haze events, on Singapore’s forest ecosystems, trees and native wildlife.

The El Nino climate cycle, which brings drier-than-normal weather to South-east Asia, has amplified the impact of haze-belching fires in Indonesia.

Said How: “By collecting baseline data before and after the El Nino period, we can better understand how forest ecosystems respond to both short-term disturbances as well as long-term pressures, which help to inform future forest management strategies.”

When the 2015 El Nino drought caused one of the worst forest and peatland fires in South-east Asia, researchers from NParks and the University of Kent found that sounds made by wildlife in Central Singapore dropped dramatically during the haze.

The disruption lasted for at least three weeks, they found.

Such noise, produced primarily by birds, only partially recovered to pre-haze levels 16 weeks after the smoke dissipated.

Ang Qing is a journalist covering local and international breaking news at The Straits Times, with a focus on the environment, crime, technology and social issues.